Mumbai, May 1 (IANS) Mumbai Indians (MI) batter Tim David has said that he felt amazing after his over heroics, which included him hitting three back to sixes in the last over against the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in an IPL 2023 match, as he was hungry to finish off the game in a thrilling fashion.
It was a run-fest at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday night as Yashasvi Jaiswal’s whirlwind of 124 off 62 balls powered Rajasthan Royals to a daunting 212/7. Then, Suryakumar’s 55 off 29 coupled with Cameron Green’s brisk 44 off 26 and David’s finishing heroics 45 not out off just 14 balls helped MI chase down the target with three balls to spare.
With MI needing 17 off the last over, David started off in a brilliant fashion as he cracked a flat six over long off, off the first ball bowled by Jason Holder. He then plundered a full toss over deep mid-wicket and sent the ball into the stands. The next one flew in the same direction as David thrashed it out of the park to win it for MI with a hat-trick of sixes.
“I’ve been hungry. Haven’t finished like that, so it was amazing. The team’s so excited. The other boys have been putting in big performances and I’ve been waiting for my chance. I am really pleased I took it. I’ve been hungry to finish off games like that. It plays on your mind because you want to do it. Trying to stay in the present and just enjoy it when it comes,” David said in a post-match press conference.
The Australian further said hitting sixes is never easy as he put in a lot of hard work in developing the skill, adding that batting coach Kieron Pollard played a huge part in his training.
“It hasn’t come easily and it hasn’t felt like it is coming easy so far this season. When you get in that momentum, you’ve got to run with the moment. I’ve been putting in some really hard work on the training field in the last few weeks. I am grateful to the support staff and Polly’s (Kieron Pollard) a big part of it. A lot of conversation and then just trying to relax and enjoy the game,” he said.
Mumbai looked in trouble when they were 104/3 in 12 overs but Green and Suryakumar played brilliant knocks to keep MI in the game.
“When batting conditions are so good, like tonight here at the Wankhede, we believe we can chase down anything, especially given the power we’ve got. We saw Surya coming out tonight and playing an amazing innings. We get accustomed to expecting that from him, but it was just something special,” David said.
“Hitting his first ball for six, some of his other shots as well. I try not to think too much about a fixed number. It doesn’t come off every day, so I am going to enjoy this one,” he added.
Sharing his thoughts about the last over bowling, the MI batter said: “It was tough bowling. It was very sweaty, so gripping the ball was very tough. As a batter, you feel when you have the momentum. When the first ball went for six, it was a very tough role for him (Jason Holder). I feel for him.”
“It was tough for everyone. For me, personally, it was about staying level. I have been hungry to finish off a game like that and it plays on your mind at times, because you want to do it. So just try to enjoy it when it comes,” he added.
–IANS
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